Tesla Gets A Break

Luxury electric car-maker

saw a ray of sunshine on Thursday after its earnings report gave investors reason to believe the company has a bright future. Tesla shares have seen a significant decline over the past year as uncertainty about the firm's forward momentum weighed on sentiment, but based on the company's fourth quarter results, the automaker may be in a better position than initially perceived.

On the company's earnings call, CEO Elon Musk was able to reassure investors with positive sales figures.

in the fourth quarter rose 75 percent from one year ago and the Model S trumped competitors like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class, whose sales fell 13 percent during the same quarter. In the coming year, Musk said he expects deliveries to rise to between 80,000 and 90,000 for the Model S.

While there were some bright spots in Tesla's earnings report, the results weren't all positive. The firm lost $0.87 per share, worse than analysts' expectations of $0.12 EPS. This year the company is forecast to continue losing money for the first three quarters before turning a profit at the end of 2016.

Investors are looking forward to the company's Model 3 vehicle, set to debut at the end of March. The lower-cost vehicle will become available for pre-order at the end of the month, and should go into production beginning in 2017. Many expect the Model 3 to put Tesla in a stronger position in the electric-car market as it is a much more affordable Tesla vehicle with a price point of just $35,000. If the car is a hit among the public, the company

to 500,000 by 2020.